Automotive radiator grilles allow the passage of air through the forward portion of the automobile to the radiator which is supported on the body of the automobile immediately behind the grille. The radiator grille can be mounted on the body of the vehicle, and thus is relatively fixed in position, or mounted on the hood assembly, and thus is movable relative to the radiator when the hood is raised. Typically, the hood is pivotally attached to the vehicle body at a rearward edge of the hood at a location near the windshield of the vehicle. Thus, the raising of the hood panel to reach the engine and related components beneath the hood results in the radiator grille also being raised relative to the radiator. Lowering the hood panel is often accomplished with a substantial force being applied to secure the hood panel latch mechanism. This application of force to close the hood panel is also transmitted to the radiator grille.
The hallmark of a typical vehicle has been symbolized more by its grille design than any other singular design element. As such, grilles are held to high standards of fit and durability. When the radiator grille is mounted to the hood panel of an automotive vehicle, the radiator grille is particularly subject to concerns relating to fit and durability. The mounting of the radiator grill to the hood panel raises a number of issues that affect the fit and durability of the radiator grille. The radiator grille is not secured to the body in its intended position, i.e. with the hood lowered into a closed position, but rather as an attached component to the hood assembly. The position of the radiator grille is far from the components, i.e. the hinge, that secure the hood assembly to the body of the vehicle, especially when the hood assembly pivots from a location near the windshield area. The force used to close the hood assembly requires that the radiator grille have larger clearances to surrounding components, although this clearance requirement can be minimized through the use of additional parts to counteract forces both from hood closing and movement during vehicle operation.
The forces resulting from the radiator grille being attached to a relatively massive hood panel cause additional stresses on the radiator grille which are much more difficult to control. The additional forces on the radiator grille from the hood latch and the hood itself, cause additional stresses on the radiator grille which are manifested in fit and durability issues that a traditional body-mounted and fixed-position radiator grille does not have. The build tolerances caused by a chain of additional parts, e.g., hood panels, hinges and pivots; cowl; fenders, etc., cause higher build and fit tolerances and unit variation in the final “hood closed” position of the radiator grille compared to its surrounding components. During vehicle operation, the radiator grille will move with the hood, independent of the surrounding components, such as headlamps, fascia, radiator support, etc. The radiator grille will also undulate at speed, commonly referred to as “grille flutter”, or as a result of closing the hood, inducing the radiator grille to move independently from other fixed front end components.
Traditional approaches to solving the above fit and durability issues for a hood-mounted radiator grille have utilized hard plastic or rubber components, sometimes interfacing with metal or other body parts, which have to be individually fit and/or manually adjusted, or are simply non-adjustable. Such conventional solutions are many times operator-dependent, expensive, and do not fully address the problem of introducing unintended stresses in, and/or causing poor fit of, the radiator grille. Furthermore, these conventional approaches to resolve the fit and durability of the radiator grille often result in squeaks, rattles, premature wear, and other issues with the radiator grille and even in the added parts because of the necessary contact and high stresses in such a system. As a result, these conventional “solutions” are often no better than the problem itself.
One known conventional device is used on the current Ford F-150 pick-up truck uses a fix metal brace with an integral rubber stop, which is not adjustable. This conventional device is represented in U.S. Pat. No. 6,923,496, granted to Edward Pleet, et al. on Aug. 2, 2005, wherein a bracket including a pad material is attached to a motor vehicle frame to reduce the vibrations of a hood-mounted grille resulting from road forces or from slamming the hood shut. This anti-flutter bumper includes a bracket with a resilient pad, which may be made of rubber, plastic, nylon, a spring, or any other vibration-absorbing material. When the hood is closed, the anti-flutter bumper forms an interference fit with the inward-facing lower edge of the grille via the resilient pad, thus supporting the radiator grille in position.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,127, issued on Dec. 26, 1995, discloses a support system that allows the lower edge of a hood-mounted radiator grille to resiliently flex along with the bumper, thus absorbing impacts during low-speed collisions. This system possesses sufficient rigidity to make the radiator grille relatively unsusceptible to road and aerodynamically induced vibrations. The radiator grille is attached by the upper edge thereof to the hood such that the lower edge of the radiator grille is suspended over the bumper. The upper grille flange extends from the upper support member and attaches to the hood through the return flange, permitting the radiator grille to rotationally flex relative to the hood during impact. The lower support member of the grille is also attached to the hood through the resilient support member, providing rigidity and vibration-dampening capability to the entire grille support system, thus reducing grille flutter. Screw-adjustable rubber stops can be utilized to achieve manual adjustment for the radiator grille support, but such devices have to be adjusted for each unit to account for build and part tolerances and variation specific to each unit built.
None of the known prior art devices provide a self-adjusting support for a hood-mounted radiator grille. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a radiator support that would be capable of self-adjustment in any of three independent directions to accommodate build tolerances and provide an anti-flutter support for a hood-mounted radiator grille.